Oscar winner Alex Dinelaris receives honorary doctorate of Fine Arts from Barry U

Barry University had a famous visitor on Saturday. Alex Dinelaris, Academy Award-winning writer of Birdman or (the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), received an honorary doctorate of Fine Arts. Dinelaris, a Long Island, New York, native who attended Barry as an undergrad, addressed the students at the 75^th anniversary commencement, sharing his powerful story of overcoming poverty and talking about the impact the school had on his life.

After leaving Barry, Dinelaris went on to receive the Oscar for best original screenplay for Birdman, wrote the book of the musical On Your Feet, the story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan that opened on Broadway last year, and co-produced the Academy Award-winning film The Revenant. He later tweeted: “26 years late but today my daughters got to see me graduate college. Thank you @BarryUniversity #ForeverGrateful.”